Mara Elena Walsh and Lewis Carroll: Transatlantic Resonances of Fantasy and Folklore in

Childrens Literature
Lewis Carrolls Alice in Wonderland, which celebrates the higher sense of nonsense and
introduces readers to a Wonderland full of vivid and irrational characters, transformed the genre
of childrens literature in the English-speaking world. Although Carroll achieved international
fame for his writing, Mara Elena Walsh (19302011), the first Argentine author to write in the
nonsense genre for children, is famous in her own country but little known elsewhere. The
purpose of this project is to determine whether this internationally obscure Argentinean writer
was influenced by Lewis Carroll, and, if so, to establish how Walsh re-interpreted his ideas in a
different historical context. Regardless, I will examine whether Mara Elena Walsh played the
same role in Argentina that Carroll played in England by departing from the didactic,
condescending prose for children of earlier generations and speaking to children in terms they
understand and enjoy, e.g. nonsense, wordplay, and kinetics.
To complete this project, I propose traveling to the International Youth Library in
Munich and spending two weeks reviewing Walshs works as well as the copious material about
Walshs life, influences, style, and connections to Lewis Carroll in their documentation library.
The culmination of my studies will be an article written about Mara Elena Walsh which, with
my facultys advisors help, I hope to publish in an international journal of childrens literature,
as well as a complete bibliography of English and Spanish sources relating to Walsh which can
be used by future researchers pursuing the same course of study. I will also present an exhibit in
the Northwestern Library at the end of the academic year on Mara Elena Walsh, and will
incorporate the material into an honors thesis in International Studies.
A Eurocentric conceptualization of the term international has caused many scholars of
comparative childrens literature to focus on texts produced solely in (Western) Europe and the
English-speaking world. Emer OSullivan emphasizes that The international book trade is
dominated by the north-west European and North American region which has greatly
contributed to the fact that there is no equal exchange of texts between all countries; rather,
the border crossing process is extremely imbalanced.1 Argentina is situated outside of these
common routes of textual exchange. OSullivans observations help to explain why Mara Elena
Walsh, although immensely popular in Argentina, is virtually unknown outside of her home
country and especially in the United States. I began my research on Walsh by exploring the
resources available within the Northwestern University Library system. Although Walsh
published over forty books exclusively for children, only three were available when I started this
project, and Dailan Kifki, arguably her most important work, was not among them. With my
faculty advisor, who is on the staff of Northwesterns library, I have helped correct this deficit,
but the point remains: Even in a first-class research library, the most outstanding childrens
writers outside of the Anglo-European mainstream are grossly underrepresented.
I strongly suspect that Mara Elena Walsh was influenced by Lewis Carroll and that she
re-interpreted his ideas within her cultural context. Both Carroll and Walsh utilize strong-willed
and rational female protagonistsand both were one of the first to do so in their respective
countries. Alice in Wonderland, written on dual levels, is simultaneously one girls exploration of
a nonsense world and an authors highly-charged societal critique and political commentary.
Walshs Dailan Kifki takes place in the plane of reality, yet the female narrator encounters a
stream of fantastical obstacles, ranging from a flying elephant to an incompetent Secretary of
Aeronautics who has little to no idea of how to run his department. Both Dailan Kifki and

Desventuras en el pas-jardn-de-infantes (Misadventures in the Kindergarten Country) are

acerbic critiques of the Argentine military dictatorship woven into the form of an entertaining
and nonsensical book for children. Where Carroll has caterpillars speak in riddles, so does Walsh
have firefighters compose limericks. Both authors employed nonsense as a tool to critique their
worlds and to challenge authority. As William Blackburn noted, nonsense is the art of
rearranging immutable laws in such a way as to set logic, order, authority, or accepted standards
of behavior slightly awry.2 Their use of nonsense enabled the child readers of Walsh and Carroll
to perceive reality in such a way that encouraged creativity and questioned structures of
authority. This world view is a tremendous departure from the pre-Walsh and pre-Carroll
childrens books in Argentina and England respectively, which emphasized rigidity, didacticism,
and unquestioning obedience.
Thus I believe that an in-depth analysis of Walshs works, and their relationship to Alice
in Wonderland, is highly necessary. Was Walsh influenced by Carrolls work, and if so, to what
extent? Did Walsh ever explicitly acknowledge her works similarities to Carrolls? To prepare
for this research visit, I have already corresponded via email with the librarians at the IYL, all of
whom have extensive backgrounds in childrens literature research, and a collection of sources
on Walsh has already been assembled for me. I will focus on autobiographical material published
by Walsh, in which she may draw connections between herself and Carroll, and especially her
column from the Argentine newspaper La Nacin, which will provide me with Walshs insights
into her own work.
I plan to leave for Munich on March 12th and return on the 25th. These dates coincide
with finals week and spring break, such that I will be able to complete my research unimpeded
by coursework. I have established contact with Petra Woersching, who, as Directors Assistant at
the IYL, works with international students who travel to Munich to complete research projects.
Ms. Woersching has arranged for my accommodation, as recorded in Appendix A.
As a research assistant for Professor Jeffrey Garrett, Director of Special Collections and
Archives at the Northwestern Library, I have spent the academic year assembling a preliminary
bibliography of Mara Elena Walshs work. I have devoted time to reading and evaluating
Walshs work, and out of this research I developed my questions regarding the role of Walshs
work in Argentina, as well as inquiries about the similarities between her work and Lewis
Carrolls. My coursework as an International Studies and Anthropology major has prepared me
for this research, as have the classes I have taken in Spanish, which enable me to read sources in
that language. As questions arise, I will turn to my faculty advisor, Professor Garrett, and to the
librarians at the International Youth Library for guidance.
My research on Mara Elena Walsh and the international world of childrens literature
speaks deeply to my academic interests. This research lies at the nexus of a larger project, one
which includes my position as a student research assistant, the books I suggested that
Northwestern acquire, and the exhibit I will present in the library at the end of the academic year
on Walsh. In spring quarter I will enroll in an Independent Study seminar, during which time I
will continue to pursue my research on Walsh and develop ideas for the honors thesis in
International Studies that I plan to write about Walsh. In addition, the article and accompanying
bibliography that I aim to publish in an international journal of childrens literature will
hopefully spark interest in and encourage further research on Walsh. Ultimately, I hope that
Walshs work will be re-illustrated, translated into English, and published in the United States,
and that her invaluable contributions to childrens literature be recognized by experts and
publishersand enjoyed by childreneverywhere.

1
2

Emer OSullivan, Comparative Childrens Literature (Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge, 2005), 65.

Blackburn, W. (1980). Lifting the Curse of the Roman: Quintus Horatius Flaccus Meets the
Pied Piper of Hamelin: 23.

Appendix B: Selected Bibliography

Diocares, M. A. (1999). Mara Elena Walsh : el canto del tiempo nuevo.
Dujovne Ortiz, A. (1982). Mara Elena Walsh. Madrid; Gijn, Ediciones Jcar.
Facio, S. and M. E. Walsh (1999). Mara Elena Walsh : retrato(s) de una artista libre. Buenos Aires,
Argentina, LA, La Azotea, Editorial Fotogrfica.
Foster, D. W. (1994). Cultural diversity in Latin American literature. Albuquerque, University of New
Mexico Press.
Garrett, J. (1992). "Far-Away Wisdom: Three Nominees for the 1992 Andersen Prize." The Reading
Teacher 46(4): 310-314.
Garrett, J. (1994). "Highly Commended for the 1994 Hans Christian Anderson Award: Mara Elena
Walsh." IBBY-Bookbird 32(3): 12-14.
Gordenstein, R., I. A. Luraschi, et al. (1995). "Review of: Mara Elena Walsh o "el desafo de la
limitacin"." Hispania 78(1): 74-75.
Guerriero, L. (April 8, 2011). "Recordando a Mara Elena Walsh: entrevista a Sara Facio." La Nacin.
Hazel, R. M. (1983). Traditions and transformations in the stories for children by Mara Elena Walsh.
Herbst, M. (1999) "Mara Elena Walsh y la opinin urgente".
Herbst, M. (1999). Mara Elena Walsh y su retrica ensaystica : polaridad opresin-liberacin en la
Argentina del ltimo tercio del siglo XX.
Klimovsky, C. P. and M. E. Walsh (1995). "Review of Desventuras en el Pas-Jardn-de
Infantes." Hispamrica 24(70): 122-123.
Origgi de Monge, A. E. (2004). Textura del disparate : estudio crtico de la obra infantil de Mara Elena
Walsh. Buenos Aires, Lugar.
O'Sullivan, E. (2005). Comparative children's literature. Abingdon, Oxfordshire; New York, Routledge.

Pujol, S. A. (1993). Como la cigarra : biografa de Mara Elena Walsh. Buenos Aires, Beas Ediciones.
Rojas-Trempe, L. and C. V. d. Vallejo (1998). Potica de escritoras hispanoamericanas al alba del
prximo milenio. Miami, Fla., Ediciones Universal.
Sibbald, K. M. (1997). Mara Elena Walsh Encyclopedia of Latin American Literature V. Smith.
Chicago, Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers 1561-1565.
Spencer, M. M. (2001). Children's literature and national identity. Stoke on Trent, Trentham Books.
Viater, N. (10/01/2011) Mara Elena Walsh: adis a la mujer que nos ense a ser chicos y nos hizo
crecer. Clarin
Walsh, M. E. (1999). Diario brujo : 1995-1999. Buenos Aires, Espasa Calpe. [Walshs Personal Diary]

Appendix C: Selected Bibliography of Works by Mara Elena Walsh

Childrens Literature
La mona Jacinta [Jacinta the Monkey]. Buenos Aires, 1960.
Tut Maramba. Buenos Aires, 1960.
El reino del Revs [The Upside-Down Kingdom]. Buenos Aires: Faria Editores, 1965.
Zoo Loco [Crazy Zoo]. Buenos Aires: Faria Editores, 1966.
Cuentopos de Gulub [Tales of Gulub]. Buenos Aires: Faria Editores, 1966.
Dailan Kifki. Buenos Aires: Faria Editores, 1966.
El diablo ingls [The English Devil]. Buenos Aires: Editorial Estrada, 1970.
La sirena y el capitn [The Mermaid and the Captain]. Buenos Aires: Editorial Estrada, 1974.
El pas de la geometra [The Geometry Country]. Buenos Aires: Editorial Estrada, 1974.
Chaucha y palito [Little to Nothing]. Buenos Aires: Sudamericana, 1977.
Bisa vuela [Bisa Flies]. Buenos Aires: Hyspamrica, 1985.
La nube traicionera [The Treacherous Cloud]. Buenos Aires: Sudamericana, 1989.
Manuelita Dnde vas? [Manuelita, Where are you Going?]. Buenos Aires: Espasa-Calpe, 1997.
Manuelita la Tortuga [Manuelita the Tortoise] Buenos Aires: Espasa-Calpe, 1998.
Hotel Piohos Palace. Buenos Aires: Alfaguara, 2002.

Works for Adults

Otoo imperdonable [Unforgivable Autumn]. Buenos Aires, 1947.
Apenas viaje [As Soon as I Travel]. Buenos Aires, 1948.
Casi milagro [Almost a Miracle]. Montevideo, 1958.
Hecho a Mano [Hand Made]. Buenos Aires: L. Farias, 1965.
Fantasmas en el parque [Ghosts in the Park]. Buenos Aires: Alfaguara, 2008.

Albums of songs for Children (Selected)

Canciones para m [Songs for Me], 1963
Canciones para mirar [Songs to Look At], 1963
Juguemos en el mundo [Lets Play in the World], 1968
El sol no tiene bolsillos [The Sun doesnt have Pockets], 1971
Como la cigarra [Like the Cicada], 1972
De puo y letra [Handwritten] 1976